Poker Player Robert Mercer Admits to Lying About Cancer for 2023 WSOP Main Event Bid

Amateur poker player Robert Mercer lied about having terminal cancer so he could raise money to enter the 2023 World Series of Poker Main Event, according to David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Mercer started a GoFundMe in June claiming that he had Stage IV colon cancer in order to raise the $10,000 entry fee to participate in the WSOP. He admitted to Schoen in a phone interview that he does not have cancer.

"I did lie about having colon cancer. I don't have colon cancer. I used that to cover my situation," Mercer said. "What I did was wrong. I shouldn't have told people I have colon cancer. I did that just as a spur-of-the-moment thing when someone asked me what kind of cancer I had.

"I'm sorry for not being honest about what my situation was. If I would have done that from Day One, who knows what would have happened."

Mercer received donations worth an estimated $30,000 to $50,000, according to Schoen, including a suite at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in July for the WSOP. Cody Daniels, a chronically ill poker player, also donated $2,500 to Mercer.

His scam was unearthed by Hustler Casino Live founder Nick Vertucci and poker influencer Doug Parscal Jr.

GoFundMe contacted Mercer for violating its terms of service but he has no intention of repaying the money as "he believes he has undiagnosed breast cancer and the donations were made because he was sick," according to Schoen.

Mercer has essentially been banished from the poker community for his actions and he no longer plays "because of his deteriorating health" and the fact that he spends nearly 18 hours per day in bed, per Schoen.

American professional poker player Daniel Weinman won the 2023 World Series of Poker, earning $12.1 million.